Picking Sides
by RGW317
Summary: Beautiful, Rich, and seductive Lorelei Tell has been kept prisoner in her own home since she came of age. Unaware of her true self, and tired of being imprisoned by her family, Lorelei runs away only to find herself being captured, again, this time into a world she never even knew existed.
1. Chapter 1

Of all the situations I thought I would have found myself in tonight, being brutally kidnapped by a wolf, and a blonde chick were definitely not one of them. "Let me go!" I screeched, kicking and clawing at the arms that encircled my chest. "You have no idea who you're messing with ok," I spat, "Do you know who my parents are?"

The wolf, now turned...human, chuckled and shot a look to the blonde lady that was throwing open the door of a van. _Oh god, this is it. This is how I die._ I swallowed. "Sweetie, I'm not sure you even know who you're parents are." She said, knowingly. I stared at her, hard and long, and right when I was about to be tossed into the truck I grabbed her hand. Clamping down on her wrist I pulled her to me so that we were eye to eye, feeling the heat travel from my hand to her. "You don't want to do this," I said softly, "You don't want to hurt me."

The girl's hard demeanor faltered, and her eyes fluttered as my grip tightened. "Tamsin!" The wolf, for lack of better words, barked. He tore me away and the blonde girl stumbled back, reaching for her head.

"Shit." She breathed, "Listen kid I've already got one handsy succubus on my plate, I don't need another."

"A what?" I asked, still struggling against this guy's grip. I felt my heart speed up, and I could hear the blood pumping in my ears. "You… you know what I am?"

"Yes," She snorted, "and you will too just as soon as you get your ass in that van."

I bit my lip in contemplation, this wolf was incredibly strong, and it seemed my chances of escaping were slim to none. However, I didn't run away three days ago only to be recaptured and imprisoned, and this time by people I didn't even know.

"On one condition." I said, looking back at the blonde.

Tamsin rolled her eyes, "what?"

"You let me call my parents first."

This got a laugh out of both of them. "Daddies girl, huh?" Tamsin snorted, pulling out her phone. "They won't find you hun, but I sort of thought that's what you wanted, isn't it?"

 _They'd been watching me._ I knew I'd felt something for weeks, and I also knew that was all the more reason to leave. Suddenly, my 1,000 thread count sheets, and bedroom door that automatically locked itself at 10 PM didn't seem so bad. Even though for years I'd been a prisoner in my own home, it didn't seem any more as daunting to go back to when I looked at the two who had just captured me.

Giving up, I sighed. " _Please_ , I just want to say goodbye."

"Oh honestly," Tamsin scoffed, "We're not going to kill you succubitch, calm your feminine wiles, alright?"

"Y-You're not?" I whimpered.

"Get her in the van," Tamsin ordered, whipping around and heading for the drivers seat. The wolf guy lightly shoved me into the van, if that was even possible, and before shutting the door poked his head in

"Sorry if we scared you." He said, quietly. "We just want to help you, ok?"

"By kidnapping me?" I scoffed, yanking at the mess they made of my dark brown hair. "Great work." With that, the door closed.

The wolf must have slipped me something on the way there because suddenly I was waking up, my eyes were heavy and I felt like all the wind had been knocked out of me. Someone was carrying me, through corridors with tall ceiling, and marble flooring. If my memory wasn't slowly coming back to me, I would have thought they'd taken me home. "W-where…" I started, trying squirm out of the grip that was holding me.

"Shhhh." It was the wolf, and his coaxing only made me want to escape more.

"You drugged me," I groaned, giving up the fight when I realized it hurt to move even a single muscle in my body.

"No, you're just hungry. When was the last time you fed?"

"I don't know," I huffed, before you and blondie bad cop showed up, I was eating breakfast."

"No I meant, when was the last time you fed off someone?"

"Whoa there wolf boy, don't know if you noticed but I am totally underage, and these questions probably file somewhere under sexual harassment."

The wolf chuckled. "Relax, Lorelei, you will understand everything soon."

"You know my name too?" I sighed, leaning into him, my fatigue was getting worse and worse. "Everybody does, we've been watching you for a long time."

"Oh, not creepy at all."

"You're one of us, Lorelei, and I think deep down you always knew you weren't like you're family."

"Hey!" I snapped, twisting in his grip and ignoring the pain. "You don't get to talk about my family, alright? They we're protecting me."

"By keeping you imprisoned?"

"By keeping me safe, by… by keeping others safe." I choked out.

"Hey, don't worry, ok? We'll teach you to control it-"

"Dyson!" Someone called of in the distance, the wolf turned us around in a circular motion that made me a bit queasy. "Oh thank god you're back, Bo and Kenzi had a run in with an under fae and I think he's still out on the loose, and -" The voice suddenly stopped, and I opened one eye to see what had happened. Standing before us was a tall blonde woman in a lab coat, she was looking at me strangely, almost enchantedly.

"Take a picture," I croaked, "It lasts longer."

"Is that… is she…?" The woman began.

"Yes," Dyson said, gruffly. "And don't get any funny ideas, Doc. She's not another experiment for your lab." That made me want to use whatever strength I had left to get the hell out of there, but Dyson's firm grip around me and protective tone made me feel a bit safer.

"Oh give it a rest Dyson, you know I wouldn't do that, I'm excited for this, for her… and for Bo." _Who is this Bo?_

"We've got a meeting with the Ashe, so tell Bo I'll find her later." Dyson started to turn away.

"Wait!" The doctor called, "she's sick, is she hungry?"

 _Why do people keep saying that?_

"I had breakfast!" I protested, in the most pathetic of voices, my head rolled back into Dyson's neck.

"On second thought," Dyson began, "go get Bo, we might need her help on this."

Next thing I knew we were moving again, and after a while I was gently placed into a chair. My vision was becoming fuzzy, and all I could hear was a collection of voices coming from every direction. "Where is she?" Came an urgent voice, and through the haze that was my vision I could barely make out a tall, dark, figure.

"She's weak," I could hear Dyson say, "She needs to feed, but I don't think she knows how to control it yet."

The figure came towards me, and the second I felt its touch, something in me shifted. It was like immediate warmth was being rushed through my body, and affection, and something else, something deeper, like a sense of kinship. My vision started to clear, and suddenly I could see her face. Her dark brown hair and eyes, and smile. "W-who are you?" I managed to say, squirming under her grip.

"We'll get to that later ok? You just need to feed, and I'm going to help you."

"Why do people keep saying that, I literally had breakfast not too long ago, and it was a decent size-" I stopped breathing when I realized what was happening, the woman was inching towards me her eyes shutting.

The second I came to the full realization she was going to kiss me it felt like my entire body had been recharged. "No!" I screamed, shoving her back, which actually only shoved me backwards since I was in a chair. I went tumbling back, and scrambled across the floor to put as much distance between myself and the woman.

"It's ok, you won't hurt me!" She said softly, trying to step closer to me.

""No, no, no!" I screeched, my body was starting to feel weak again, and I continued to crawl farther and farther away. I could feel myself shaking, the tears starting to slip down my cheeks, and when I looked up an entire room of people were staring at me. I pulled my knees to my chest, and hugged them tightly, trying to hide my face. " _Please_ ," I sobbed, "I don't - I _can't_ hurt anybody else!"

"Hey." I felt a hand on my shoulder and that warmth again, I wanted to push her away but all my strength was draining. "I promise you will not hurt me, but if you don't do this you will definitely be hurting yourself."

I was shaking uncontrollably now, and it was more because I knew I couldn't fight her, I couldn't fight _it._ The woman grabbed my face then, and just as I thought she was going to kiss me, I felt the energy transfer. The blue stream was pouring from her mouth to mine and I couldn't believe that I wasn't losing control, just when I'd regained all my strength, and was sure I'd take the last of hers, she shoved me back. I couldn't believe it, she stopped me, she'd pushed me back.

"How?" I breathed, looking at her. "No one's ever done that before."

"My name is Bo Dennis, and I think we've got a lot to talk about, Lorelei Tell."


	2. Chapter 2

"So you're telling me that I literally _feed_ off the sexual energy of others?" I asked, wringing my hands in my lap. Bo smiled, and nodded.

"I know it sounds weird, and scary, but it's who you are, and if you give it time… you might start to love it."

"I doubt that," I said, quietly, thinking of faces I'd really rather forget. For most of my adolescent life I'd been kept prisoner in my own home under the pretense that I was being protected, but now I knew, it was the outside world that was being protected. I was monster, a demon, something to be kept away from.

"Hey," Bo said, putting a hand on my arm. "I know it feels wrong to accept yourself, but I promise you, this is where you belong. We're all like you here, this can be your home."

"Yeah," I sighed, "home has never been a comforting word for me."

"Well, it can be now."

I turned to Bo, "Are there any more of us?"

She looked down, "there was my mother, but she's gone now."

"I'm sorry," I said, "That must suck, losing your mom and all."

"I didn't really know her," Bo replied, looking out into the distance. "The only real family I've ever had were the people inside that room." This struck a chord somewhere deep inside me, and for some reason I leaned in to hug Bo. The moment I did I felt weird and silly, and Bo was surprised at first but then she threw an arm around me too.

"It still sucks," I breathed. "No matter if you knew her or not."

"What about you?" She asked, after I pulled away.

"What about me?"

"Well, from what I have heard you're parents aren't winning any awards this year."

I chuckled, but on the inside I wanted to cry. "They're… they're not bad people," I began, "They were just afraid."

"For themselves." Bo stated.

"For everyone," I said, turning to look at her again. "They're important people, and a very social family. Once they realized there was something wrong with me they couldn't risk putting everyone they knew in danger… so they locked me up. But hey, a mansion isn't that bad of a playground, I had my own gym and everything."

"But no friends." Bo said, her gaze was starting to scare me. Like she was reaching for more and if I wasn't willing she would take it from me.

I looked away. "Well what happens now?"

"That's the tricky part," she sighs, "I'm supposed to tell you that now you choose. You are either Dark Fae or Light Fae, and since you've just become self-aware the time for you to make a decision isn't much."

"What happens when I choose?"

"Well that's one thing I can't really tell you, seeing as picking sides has never been my forte."

"You mean you haven't chosen then?"

"No, but I don't really suggest that for you."

"And why not?" I asked, eyeing her.

"Because choosing a side means protection, you have to follow a code of conduct and legal things like that, but at least you'd have security. They can help you build back your life, you've just got to choose if you're good or bad."

"I don't have a life at all," I replied, bitterly. "I've never really been allowed one."

"Well this is your chance," She smiled, looking at me like she was going to suck all my feelings out again. "You know, you're very beautiful Lorelei."

I stared at her like an idiot. "You're not bad yourself," I said, warily, "although I'm sure you knew that."

"Oh no," she giggled, "I didn't mean it in a flirting kind of way. I just meant that you look different from other Succubi, you're beautiful but not in a seductive kind of way."

"Gee, thanks." I snorted.

"No!" She said again, giggling harder now. "Listen, listen, you're innocent looking, almost like a china doll."

It wouldn't be the first time I'd heard that. Growing up people would always comment on me, saying I looked like a doll, or a picture, or some type of fairy tale princess. It wasn't until I got older that I realized my looks brought less than innocent intentions. I'd had long, dark brown, hair my whole life, with really piercing green eyes, and it often set me apart. Girls hated me, boys liked me, and it wasn't until the night of my 13th birthday that I realized my body was nothing to be proud of. Not when the body of my first kiss lay dead at my feet. So being beautiful was never something I'd been proud of, why should I be? When my love would only ever cost someone their life?

Shaking away all the dark memories, I stood up. "How much time do I have before I've got to choose?"

Bo frowned, "a week."

"A week?" I huffed, "you guys really know how to let a girl get settled in."

"Speaking of that," Bo began standing up as well, "I figured you might want to stay with me and Kenzi for a few days? Until you decide?"

"It's not like I've got anywhere else to go." Bo led me back into the room we'd first encountered each other, I was surprised to see all the same faces that were in there before. They must have been waiting for hours. I saw the doctor, Dyson, and Tamsin, and a bunch of other faces I didn't know.

"Hi there," a girl with dark hair and heavy eye makeup said as she approached Bo and I. "I'm Kenzi."

"Hi," I smiled, still trying to ignore how weird this entire situation was.

I could sense the doctor looking at me, I shot her a hard stare, but soon realized it wasn't me she was looking at, it was Bo. She walked over to her and grabbed her hand, leaning in to whisper in her ear. _Oh, so that's why she was so excited for Bo._ Tamsin came up to me next, "Hey kid." She said, and I could tell she was trying not to look in the direction of the two I'd been looking at. "Sorry for earlier, I hope I didn't freak you out too much."

"No, not that much," I laughed, "Thanks for, saving me, I guess?"

"No problem, saving Succubus' is sort of my thing." She shrugged, and I could see the tips of her ears go red. Everything was starting to make a lot more sense. "So any ideas on which side you're going to choose?"

"No, actually," I said looking down, "I have no idea. Dark or light, I just want to come out of this still being, well, me I guess."

"How about I come find you this week and show you around, being dark doesn't necessarily mean bad, it just means less rules." She smiled.

"You're dark?"

"And proud." She smiled, "don't let these guys brain wash you into thinking all dark fae are evil."

I smiled at her, "I'd actually love that."

"Lorelei," Bo called, from her place beside the doctor, "I want you to meet some people, come on."

I turned to signal bye to Tamsin when she caught my arm. "Don't… don't' trust the doctor, ok?" She whispered, "Lauren is just out for herself, and she's possessive to the point of recklessness."

My blood turned cold, that was the second person to insinuate that I should keep my distance. "What do you mean?" I asked, urgently. I was about to go home with these people, and if the affection I was seeing between Bo and Lauren was any indication, I was sure Lauren would be there to.

"I can't explain everything now, just keep you're distance." She let go of me, and turned away. Taking a deep breath, I turned back to the others. I tried to tell myself not to worry, that Tamsin's warnings must have come more from her apparent jealousy than actual fear.

"Lorelei, this is my girlfriend Lauren." Bo smiled grabbing the blonde's hand.

"Yeah," I breathed, "We sort of met."

Lauren looked at me, and I could see she was trying to gauge whether or not I'd remembered Dyson's words. "It's nice to meet you, Lorelei." She went to shake my hand, and I begrudgingly gave it to her.

"Likewise." I said carefully.

"And this," Bo grinned, gesturing to a small man to the right of her, "Is my grandfather, Trick."

"Hi," Trick smiled reaching out to grab my hand. I much more willingly obliged to this handshake. "It's good to have you here, Lorelei, I hope you find yourself at home in our world."

I gave a half-hearted smile. "Yeah, I hope so too."

"Bobo," Kenzi said coming up behind us, "I've got a date night with Hale, so you two can have the place all to yourselves."

"Oh that reminds me," Bo said, "Lorelei, Hale, is the Ashe. Or in other words, the leader of the light fae. You should have a talk with him when considering sides."

"Noted," I sighed, bringing a hand up to my temples. Everything was becoming a bit overwhelming, the choosing sides, the warnings over Lauren, and I still couldn't shake the feeling of guilt over how my parents must be feeling right now.

Bo must have noticed because she put a hand on my arm to guide me away. "Come on," she said, "lets go get a drink."

"A drink?" I snorted, "I'm 18."

"I know," she smirked, turning around to look at me.

"Oh," my smile started to spread, "I think I like where you're going with this."

"Let's go out and get you a life, baby fae." She laughed, whirling around and leading me through the door. For the first time since I'd left my home, I began to feel sort of happy, maybe even safe.


	3. Chapter 3

For the first time in my life I was completely in control. Standing in the middle of a club, with a black dress that was hugging me so tightly I wasn't having the easiest time breathing, I found absolute solace in the collection of bodies dancing around me. I wasn't alone, I was one of many, and I felt strong, and desirable, and…oh shit, I was starting to get really hungry.

"Kenz," I said, turning to the girl beside me, "Where did Bo run off to?"

"Like I know," Kenzi giggled, shimmying up next to me. "She was with Lauren before, I'd say to check any dark corners or bathroom stalls if you dare, Bo is probably snacking."

"Yuck," I laughed, twirling Kenzi around and joining in on the shimmying. "I thought tonight was supposed to be _my_ crash course on human dining."

"Oh honey, you know Bo loves to promote hands on learning!" She shouted over the music, and I laughed again. If I hadn't been so distracted by the music and the dancing, I would have probably notice Tamsin come up beside us before she made her apparent, and Tamsin-like entrance.

"Hey losers," She grinned, she wasn't dancing or even moving to the beat but she hardly looked out of place in her dark green mini dress and heels.

"Tam Tam, look at you," Kenzi hooted, "not dressed up for anyone in particular I hope?"

Tamsin rolled her eyes and ignored the more than obvious question. "Any luck with the weaker species yet, Succubus?"

"Unfortunately no, seeing as my teacher is otherwise preoccupied." I huffed, looking around the dimly lit club.

"Where is she?" Tamsin asked.

"Guess," I replied, pulling Tamsin into a dance with Kenzi and I.

"Oh no," Tamsin said, trying to dodge us, "I don't dance."

"You do tonight!" Kenzi giggled, pulling her back.

"I'll make you a deal, I help you feed and you let me off on this female bonding shit." Tamsin said, turning to me.

"Done!" I said, not completely thinking, and probably completely tipsy. Tamsin took me by the arm and pulled me to the bar. Ordering two drinks, Tamsin turned around and leaned back against the bar. I noticed for the first time that night that Tamsin was a different kind of stunning, like an out of this world, ethereal type of pretty. Yet she looked so sad, you could see it in her eyes. "Why'd you come out tonight?" I asked, sipping on my drink.

"Oh, you know, taking a break from my usual busy and exciting life. Making time for the little people." She grinned, not looking at me.

"I'm serious," I said.

"Me too," She frowned.

"I can see you're not the girl talk type."

"Good eyes." She took a sip of her drink too.

"I know why you came anyways, you don't have to tell me." I turned and leaned back on the bar like her, turning to look at her I could feel her glare searing through me.

"Oh yeah?"

"I can see auras, you know? And I can especially read them when someone is attracted to another person." I felt my cheeks heat up, somehow unmasking Tamsin's crush on Bo was embarrassing me more than her.

"What's your point?"

"It's enough just to see her isn't it?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Tamsin coughed.

"You don't have to be ashamed of it," I said, touching her arm. "I know what it's like to want something that can never belong to you, trust me."

Tamsin looked at me, and for a moment we just stood like that staring at each other, trying to understand one another. "We'll talk about me when _I_ want to talk about me, now, are you hungry or no?"

"While I'm sure that is somehow completely narcissistic, I'll drop it because I want you to trust me. And yes, I'm starving."

"Ok," Tamsin began, "Who looks tasty?"

"Oh come on," I whined, "don't put it like that."

"Sorry, sorry," she laughed, "just pick one."

I looked around the club, like any Friday night there was a decent collection of good looking people. A group of Frat guys standing at the other end of the bar taking shots and hollering, I looked over at Tamsin. _Pass_ , we said, telepathically. I turned my attention to the people dancing, there were a few pretty girls but for the most part I felt uninspired. Then I saw him, standing by a table, alone, and even though that is an initial sign of trouble, this guy was so handsome I couldn't notice anything else. He had black curly hair, and I was hoping it wasn't just the dimly lit room that made him look so tan, and rugged. I could barely breathe, staring at him was making my palms sweat.

"Tamsin," I whispered, nodding to the guy.

"Well what are you doing?" She looked at me, "go over there!"

"I-I can't," I said, after a moment. I fell back against the bar, "I wouldn't know what to say."

Tamsin looked me up and down. "Lor, honey, you probably don't even need to talk."

"No, Tamsin, you don't get it." I sighed, throwing back the rest of my drink I turned my body to face her. I knew I was drunk by now, because never, in my right mind, would I be thinking about, let alone physically saying the next thing that came out of my mouth. "I've killed every boy I've ever kissed." The moment it was out the world seemed to slow down, my mouth went dry and I could feel my eyes sting with the oncoming tears.

Tamsin didn't say anything at first, she just stared at me. Next thing I knew she was hugging me, and I was trying not to cry but the sudden closeness and full realization of what I'd just said didn't help. "Listen to me," she said into my ear, "everything that has happened before this doesn't count."

"Of course it does," I choked out, "I killed people-"

"Lorelei," She snapped, pulling back from me, "you didn't know, you couldn't have known. You're family imprisoned you for five years and they never tried to help you understand who you are. You are not a monster, you're a succubus, and you can't apologize for your nature."

"I'm scared, alright? If I hurt someone else, I don't think I can survive that again." I stumbled a bit after saying that, Tamsin caught me. I was getting weaker and it wasn't helping my case.

"Lorelei, go kiss that guy or so help me god I'll have to kiss you myself and no offense, Lor, but I'm a little out of your league, ok?" She smiled.

"God," I snorted, "your pep talks could move a nation."

"Go," she urged, "I'll be there, I won't let you hurt him. Just remember what Bo told you."

After another few shoves from Tamsin, I started my slow descent towards the guy. My heart was racing, my palms were sweating, but most of all I couldn't catch my breath. I felt so cliché, and annoyed at myself for letting a human being have such an effect on me. When I finally approached him it was like we'd both had the same idea. He smiled at me and I couldn't stop the giddy, little girl like grin that spread on my face.

"Hi," he smiled.

"Hi," I laughed.

"I'm actually glad you walked over here," He said.

"Why is that?"

"Because if you didn't, I was going to have to come to you, and then my cover would be completely blown."

"And what exactly is you cover then?" I grinned at him, and in the dark light I could make out a dimple just two centimetres from his smile. I wanted to kiss it.

"You know, the cool guy who doesn't drool after the impossibly beautiful girl at the bar."

"Oh well now your cover is definitely blown," I said, stepping closer to him now. "And you've also been outed as the cheesiest person in this Place."

"I'm Alec," He said, taking a step closer to me too.

"Lorelei." We were inches apart now. I could feel the music thumping through my body, and for the next few moments I couldn't even remember Tamsin standing and watching just a few feet away, or the fact Kenzi was roaming around somewhere and Bo and Lauren were probably still locked in the bathroom together. The only thing I could focus on was Alec, and his lips, and my growing need for them to touch mine. "Do you want to go somewhere private?" I asked, closing the space between us now. I put my hand on his arm and leaned my hips into him. I used the last of my energy on that touch, I could feel the heat spread from my hands to his arms and I could see it's affect in his face as he open and closed his mouth a few times, disoriented.

"Sure," he said, urgently, fixatedly, as he grabbed my hand and pulled me down an empty corridor I hadn't noticed. When he stopped he turned around to face me, I didn't need any more indications. Before I knew it, I was pushing him up against the wall, slamming my mouth against his. I felt Alec's arms loop around my waist and pull me tighter, moaning into his mouth, I moved my hands down his chest and slipped them under his shirt. I took a breath, and pulled back, feeling his chi transfer from him to me, and it felt different. _Special_. It tasted like something I couldn't quite place and it only made me want him more, in every way imaginable. I kept going, and before long I felt myself slipping, I was getting completely lost in it, in him.

I felt the initial panic set in. My body wasn't responding to my brain, and I was screaming at myself to stop, I could feel his energy depleting under my fingers. It was diminishing faster and faster, and the blue stream of chi was only getting stronger. _Stop_ I screamed in my head, _you're killing him, Lorelei, stop!_

Then the unthinkable happened. Someone pushed me off of him. I staggered back, looking around for Tamsin or Bo, even Kenzi, but no one was around us. "What the-"

"You sure know how to give a first impression." Alec said, straightening up and looking at me.

"Oh my god," I breathed, "Did you… did you stop me?"

"Well, not by choice of course, but I could tell you were struggling."

"You're fae," I said, staring at him.

"Bingo." He smiled.

"Oh of course," I exhaled, falling back against the wall. "Of all the people in this fucking club, I chose the only other fae."

"Well thanks, but I'll have you know, my fae-ness is not the most interesting thing about me." Alec said, starting to leave.

"No, Alec, wait!" I caught his arm. "What I meant is that this was sort of a field trip for me, to… to learn how to control my…"

"Needs?" He quirked an eyebrow.

"Hunger," I smiled, biting my lip. "I needed to learn how to feed off humans without, well, hurting them."

"Sorry to disappoint."

"Oh you didn't," I said, maybe a bit too quickly, "disappoint, I mean."

"Glad to hear it." We both stood there, grinning at each other like idiots.

The moment was ruined the second Bo appeared. "Oh my god!" She sighed, when she saw me. She walked up and grabbed my arm pulling me to her. "I was so worried, I couldn't find you anywhere!"

"Yeah, same here." I said, pulling myself out of her grip. She smelt like vodka cranberry, and Lauren, and it made me a little nauseous.

"Have you eaten?" She asked, still oblivious to Alec.

I swallowed, my cheeks heating up. "Y-yeah, we should go." I started to pull her away.

"Lorelei," Alex said, Bo whipped around and looked at him.

"Oh, hello there," Bo said, and something flashed in her eyes that scared the complete shit out of me. So instead of turning back to Alec, I pushed on, dragging Bo behind me.

"Lorelei wait," he called again, "Can I see you again?"

"Did you feed of him?" Bo giggled.

"Yes," I said, yanking her again.

"Yes?" Alec said, he was on our heels.

"No, I mean no." I replied, I had to find Tamsin.

"Well we can't leave yet then!" Bo said stopping short.

"Can I at least get your number?" Alec said, staring at me.

"I don't have one," I replied, taking a chance and looking into his eyes I felt my insides twist. "But, I'll see you again."

"How do you know?" He asked.

"I just do," I smiled, in reality I had no idea if I'd see his face again, yet there was something about him. Something familiar and warm, and I felt like even if I turned and walked out of this club I'd still feel his gaze and his lips, and his _everything._ "I should go," I said, taking Bo's hand again. "I need to get her home." Bo snorted at that, obviously sobering up.

"I'll see you around then, Lorelei." He smiled.

I didn't look back, I pulled Bo through the bar until we found Lauren and then left. Sitting in the car I knew I would have to go out again and work on the whole human feeding thing, but I couldn't help and feel wrong about it. I didn't want to feed or kiss any humans, I just wanted to kiss Alec, and that was the beginning of what was wrong.


	4. Chapter 4

"It felt like we'd known each other for years, you know? Like an unspoken connection." I said to Tamsin, as I sat in the driver's seat of her truck relaying the events of the other night. She'd promised to teach me how to drive today, considering it was one of the many things I missed out on while being held captive in Casa de Tell.

"Really, Lor? Were there fireworks in the background, too?" She grinned, mockingly. I rolled my eyes at her, and hit the brakes suddenly, sending her flying forward before the seat belt caught her.

"What was that, Tammy?" I giggled.

"Look kid, do you want to learn to drive or not?" She huffed, sitting back against the seat. "We've got a busy day."

"Yeah," I said, after a moment. "Yeah, I know." I had only three days until I had to pick a side, and I was still very much undecided. On one hand I knew that while Bo didn't claim a side she was very much aligned with the light, and on the other hand, my new but fast growing friendship with Tamsin made me question whether or not I should choose the dark. Either way I'd be separating myself from someone and I could barely handle that, not when I'd just gained them. Then my mind drifted to Alec, his sweet smile, and his laugh. What side was he on? What if I chose one and only later found out he was the other?

Turning back to Tamsin, I noticed her staring intently in the rear view mirror. "What's wrong?" I asked, starting to turn around and look.

"Stop!" She commanded, swiftly sticking her arm out to keep me in place. "Lorelei, do exactly as I say, ok?"

"What…what's going on?" I whispered, my grip tightening around the steering wheel.

"Somebody's following us," She said, typing furiously into her phone. "I've informed Dyson, but you just need to calmly drive us back to the Dal, we have to act like we haven't noticed them."

"Tamsin I can't go on the highway, I don't even know how to properly park!" I said urgently, reaching to unbuckle my seat belt.

"Get your shit together, Lorelei, I'm not going to let you kill us." She replied, "just act natural, it's only ten minutes from here."

As Tamsin guided me from the passenger seat, I couldn't help but glance at the car behind us. A black sedan, with no plates, but something caught my eye. It was on the far left corner of the front window, a little German flag, with an all too familiar seal to the side of it. I'd seen then millions of times, and I didn't fully realize until we'd reached the Dal.

"Shit," I muttered, turning off the car when I came to.

"Hey you did pretty good-"Tamsin started but I cut her off.

"No," I said, urgently. "Not that, I know who's following us, we have to get out of here now!" I shoved the key back into the transmission.

"Whoa, wait, who is it?" Tamsin asked, but before I could answer the doors flew open and a pair of gruff, large men, were dragging me out of the car.

"Tamsin!" I screamed, kicking and lashing out against the guy. Tamsin didn't waste any time, in one swift movement she elbowed the guy who'd grabbed her, shooting around and kneeing him where the sun doesn't shine. She whirled around and ran after me, the person still holding on to me was trying to shove me back in the Sedan. He had my arms pinned behind my back, and had me facing away from him so my Succubus tricks were otherwise useless.

"Let her go!" Tamsin yelled, but the guy obviously didn't pay her much attention. That was a mistake. She leaped at him, jumping on to his back. Out of nowhere Dyson appeared, he grabbed the guy by his neck and I could hear the guttural choking noises as his grip on me loosened. Once he finally released me, I stumbled forward and into somebody's arms. I looked up to see Kenzi clutching me to her, and in that exact moment, Bo running past us to fight off the other two men who'd apparently been waiting in the car.

Kenzi pushed me behind her and pulled out a knife from her boot. "Stay back," She called, taking a step forward.

"Wait!" I yelled, to her and the others. "They're human, not fae!"

Kenzi stopped, and Bo and Tamsin turned to look at me just after shoving the guy they'd been fighting against the car. "It's true," Dyson said, looking up from where he had the third guy in a choke hold. "I can smell it."

"Who are they, then?" Kenzi asked, turning back to me.

"They're German spies," I sighed, "It's my parents. They've found me."

Twenty minutes later we were all seated in the Dal. Trick had cleared the place out, and my parent's henchmen were locked away in the basement. I sat at the head of the table, with seven pairs of eyes staring back at me.

"I knew this would happen," I groaned, putting my head in my hands. "I didn't know how much you knew about my parents. When you'd said you'd been watching me I assumed that meant you knew who they really were."

"They're lawyers," Dyson said, looking over at Tamsin, who nodded.

"No," I replied, taking a deep breath. "They are not _actually_ lawyers, they work for the Ministry of State Security in Germany, called Stasi."

"How did I miss that?" Tamsin asked, and I could tell she was really pissed at herself.

"I only found out about four years ago, all around the time I realized I was adopted, and that I had these…powers. The moment they realized, they locked me up, claiming that I was too dangerous and would bring attention to them, endangering their work. They didn't want to turn me into some test subject, but they also didn't want to make themselves vulnerable, they work on rather dangerous things."

"Ok, so what? We return the thugs and give your parents a wakeup call, we need to let them know you're not coming back." Bo said, looking around the table. I didn't reply, I just looked down at my hands. "You…you're not going back, right?"

I wanted to cry. I'd given them the brief overview of my family, but it wasn't enough, not to fully understand. I hated my parents for what they'd done to me, but at the same time, could I blame them? For not only wanting to protect me, but those around me? It also didn't help that at this point they were the only two people who could give me answers on who I really was, on where I came from. "It's complicated," I finally said, avoiding her eyes.

"Well let me uncomplicated it for you," Kenzi snorted, "You are not going back!"

"You don't understand," I said, pushing up from the table, the chair scraping under me. "They are powerful people, they're not just going to stop. I know that the fae are powerful, but I'm unaligned, who's going to protect me?"

"All the more reason to pick a side, Lorelei." Hale said, and then after a moment added, "I meant that in a totally unbiased way." Kenzi slapped him on the arm.

Bo was watching me, and I didn't even have to speak it because I knew she could read me. Yet it wasn't Bo who spoke next, it was Lauren.

"We'll protect you," She said, taking Bo's hand. "You don't have to be aligned for us to come together, we're you're friends, being light or dark doesn't factor in to that." Silence had taken over the room, I looked at Tamsin who was studying Lauren, skeptically.

"Yeah," Tamsin said, "We won't let anyone hurt you, Lor."

"It's not me I'm that worried about," I sighed, "It's you guys." They all laughed, and I looked around at them quizzically. "My parents don't play nice, and neither do the people that work for them."

"We have faced under fae, rebellions, and everything in between," Dyson smiled, "German spies don't scare us."

I smiled at them, and looked down at my feet. "Thank you," I said, softly, trying not to cry. "You guys mean so much to me, and for the little amount of time I've known you, you've been more of a family to me than the one tracking me down."

After the hugging and the compulsory feelings that came along with it, I found myself alone in the lab with Lauren. She'd dragged me down here on the pretext of a check-up, which I was probably in need of, but that thought didn't keep me from flinching every time I felt her cold touch. After the sixth flinch, she groaned and stepped away from me.

"Honestly, Lorelei, why are you so afraid of me?" She asked, folding her arms across her chest.

 _Because you want to chop me up and use me as research for advanced medicine for Bo? Because you are always looking at me like you want to lock me up in quarantine? Because you smell like vanilla mixed with lavender and while it compliments you very well, it makes me hella nauseous?_

"You're intimidating," I shrugged.

"You're lying," she said, writing things onto her clipboard. "You aren't intimidated by much, if you were you'd avoid Tamsin like the plague."

"Ah," I breathed, "and there it is."

"What?"

I looked at her, and raised my brow, smirking. "Oh come on, Doc. I'm not blind, you hate Tamsin, and she hates you, it's no secret."

"I don't hate Tamsin," She replied, indignantly. "She just…she's… I'm just…"

"Jealous?" I suggested.

She stared at me, "Why would I be jealous of Tamsin?"

I sighed, this conversation was about to take an ugly turn. "Tamsin loves Bo."

Lauren remained rather unaffected, "I know, but how would that affect me?"

"Let me paint you a picture, Lauren. Dyson loves Bo, you hate Dyson. Tamsin loves Bo, you also hate Tamsin. Trust me, the feeling is mutual between both parties, but do you see the common denominator here? It's you, they hate you because you've got Bo, and even though it's obvious Bo only loves you, that doesn't make it hurt any less."

"Oh great!" Lauren huffed, "You're in love with Bo, too? Does everyone in the entire fae community hate me now?"

I laughed, "Hardly, Lauren. No, I adore Bo, she's like a big sister to me, but my point is this thing you've got going with them is only going to get worse, you should talk to them."

"I think that would only create more problems." She sighed.

I looked down. "I think that by being with Bo, you're already going to face a lot of strife, being human and all, but Lauren, alienating her friends will only make it worse."

She didn't look at me at first, and when she lifted up her face I could see a few tears had started to slip down her cheeks. "I know," she whimpered.

 _Oh fuck._ I thought, coming down here of all the things I'd thought I'd do to Lauren, making her cry wasn't one. "Um…hey, look, don't cry. It will be alright we can fix it!"

"I can't fix this," She sobbed, gesturing to herself, "I can't fix what I am and it will only ruin my relationship with Bo."

"Alright now you're just being dramatic," I said, getting up and grabbing her arms to make her look at me. "Bo loves you, it's obvious, so instead of sitting here crying about it you should be fighting for it. Making amends with Dyson and Tamsin, and helping protect and heal your friends, and…whatever else it is you do… I'm not that aware of your hobbies."

She let out a small laugh. "Yes, you're right."

"I usually am." I smiled, letting go. "Now can I go? Doctors appointments really freak me out."

Lauren smiled, "alright, but I want you back in for a routine testing in two weeks, until you start feeding off humans you still need the injections I used to give Bo."

"Whatever you say, Doc." Before exiting, I turned back to look at her. "Lauren?"

"Yep?"

"This, um, this was nice… maybe we should do more of this you know…"

"Talking?" She smiled.

"Yeah," I grinned, "that. See you later!"


	5. Chapter 5

I was running. Not for any good reason of course, just because Tamsin says I need to lift up my fitness level because apparently looking fit and being fit are not the same thing. It was either this or giving up my addiction to junk food, so here I am, running. Considering my family hasn't taken the idea of my running away as an indication that I don't want to be around them anymore that seriously, everyone says I need to learn how to defend myself in case anything like what happened last time. On the bright side, my choosing ceremony has been pushed back for whenever the Ashe and the Morrigan can decide on a proper date.

I only agreed to my daily running regimen, along with three, weekly self-defence classes with Dyson, if I could be alone during my runs. It took a lot of convincing, but after a while I got everyone to agree, I've just got to text them every twenty minutes, unfortunately. Despite my usual distaste for all things cardio related, these runs were starting to become the highlight of my day. Ever since leaving my life with my parents, I've been missing the alone time I used to have. Although I would never trade what I have now, my solo trek along the lake was just enough to keep me sane.

I was rounding a bend when I felt something in my chest tighten. I didn't even have to look around, I could practically _feel_ him looking at me. "Alec?" I breathed, whirling around to face him. He was standing next to the bench I'd just passed, in jogging shorts and a top, his cheeks pink from the fresh spring air. He looked…beautiful, glorious, statuesque, _god I sound metal._ In seconds he was closing the distance between us with a tight embrace, and my body accepted it unconsciously. It felt almost animalistic, the way my body reacted to his touch, instantly looping my arms around his neck as he pulled me close.

 _This is not normal._ I told myself. People don't just hug a person they made out with in a club like it's the last thing they'll do. People shouldn't be able to feel when a stranger is around them without even having to look. Most of all, people (aka me) shouldn't be staring into the eyes of said stranger like they're lovers being reunited after war.

"It's you." He smiles, cupping my face in his hands. There's something so intimate about it, the way he holds me, rubbing small circles on my cheek with his thumb. Like we've been doing this for years, like we hadn't only just met two weeks ago.

"Yes," I whispered, like the complete idiot I am.

"What are you up to?" He drops his hands from my face, obviously realizing what I had yet to voice, but he reached down and took a hold of my hand.

"Running," I say, and again I sound stupid, and breathless, but it's all because this guy is so damn captivating I'm finding it hard to think straight. This is very unlike me, scientifically speaking, I'm not prone to have intimate, deep, school-girl-crush, feelings for people. I'm attracted to others, but usually only for what I can get from them. For…well, sex. Yet with Alec I'm attracted to everything, his face, his body, his voice, I don't just want to sleep with him…I want to wake up with him, go get breakfast, and walk down the street hand in hand. I take a step back, feeling his hand drop from mine.

 _You are absolutely losing your shit, Lorelei! You know nothing about him, you've only just met!_

"Come with me," He says, tugging on the sleeve of my jumper.

"What?" I ask, my mind is slowly clearing. "Where?"

"Wherever." He smiles at that, and pulls me closer.

Under any other circumstance I can assure you I would know better. Yet Alec was there, and he was smiling, and it had been so long, so _incredibly_ long since I've ever wanted something as much as I wanted him.

"Give me a location," I say, stepping away from him again but keeping my hand on his bicep. "And then I'll think about it."

"There's this bookstore with a coffee shop in it, just down the street from here. Let me buy you lunch."

I contemplate it, but only for a second. Biting my lip, I turn away from him and pull out my phone to text Dyson, because I know it will be easier to convince him than Tamsin.

'Gonna run another lap, feeling adventurous today, be back soon! – L' I press send and then turn back to Alec.

"I can't stay long," I sigh, sad at the thought of cutting my already limited time with Alec short.

"I'll take whatever time I can to be with you." He says, but he doesn't smile this time. He's looking at me, earnestly, with a nervous look in his eyes. I know I'm being ridiculous, I know this is not what I should be doing or promoting because until recently I've always been a realist. I close the distance between us, going on my toes to give him a quick kiss. When I pull back we're looking at each other and I can feel every unspoken word in the tingling of my lips.

 _I can't stop thinking about you._

 _I need you._

 _Do you believe in love at first sight?_

He grabs my hand and pulls me towards the coffee shop, once we're inside we choose a private area behind some bookshelves. For the next thirty minutes we talk about everything, from our favourite authors, to our childhood pets. In between kisses, Alec whispers that he's always wanted to be an architect but that his dad insists he joins the family business.

"What does your father do?" I ask, breathlessly, as he kisses down my neck.

Alec stops suddenly, and looks at me, for a moment I see the slightest hint of hesitation, of pain, in his eyes. But then he grabs my chin and pulls me to him for a deep, mind numbing, kiss. I moan into his mouth, as his hands lower to my hips, slipping his fingers under the hem line of my top. I'm about to tell him that maybe we should find an even more private location, when I feel a sharp pang in my head. I'm nauseous, and suddenly I'm pushing him off me, mumbling that I've got to go to the bathroom. Once inside, I slam both my hands on the bathroom counter, I can barely see straight. _What the fuck is going on?_ I can't be hungry, I just ate. Literally and figuratively.

Everything is spinning, and I sink down to the ground to try and regain balance. I fish my phone out of my pocket, and before my vision completely blurs I send a message to Bo.

'Help. Coffee shop.' I press send, not even fully aware of what I'd just typed. Then the door flies open, and I see Alec walking towards me.

"A-Alec?" I ask, shakily. "You can't be in here, it's alright, I'm fine…I just…"

"Get up, Lorelei," He says urgently, pulling me to my feet.

"What…?" I breathe, I'm completely and utterly out of it but I can't miss the nervousness in his eyes, the protective hold he has on my arm, it's getting tighter and tighter.

"Ouch," I whisper, more to myself than him.

His eyes soften, and he loosens his grip. "Fuck!" He says, pulling me towards the door. "I've got to get you out of here, now."

"Alec what's going on?" I plead, as he pulls me through a back entrance of the book store. I go to put a hand on his chest but stop the second I see it, the emblem sticking out of the top pocket of his leather jacket.

"No," I choke out, stopping short.

"Lorelei, come on," he urges, pulling my arm again.

"No!" I yell this time, and even though my head is killing me, and my ears are ringing, and I know people are staring I can't control my emotions. "Tell me what the hell you are doing with that emblem in your pocket!"

He looks around nervously, and then gulps. "Lorelei, I know this looks bad, but you have to trust me right now, ok?"

"You disgusting piece of shit!" I scream, shoving him away from me, I'm stumbling away from him now, doing whatever I can to put distance between us. "How could I be so stupid? You've been working for my parents the whole time!"

"Lorelei," He grabs me around my waist, and this is the moment I will thank Dyson for profusely in the future. I pivot quickly, and even with my raging headache I can execute this move seamlessly. Using all my strength, and the corrections I constantly get from Tam and Dyson, my fist makes contact with Alec's cheek, sending him stumbling back, but not completely defeated.

"I thought…I thought…" I sputtered, marching up to him ready to strike again.

"I know!" He says, his eyes on mine, and I feel my body stop involuntarily. "I feel it too, that's why I can't do this! Just listen to me ok? They'll be here any second, you need to leave now, run!"

I want to scream at him again, and hit him, and curse at him until he is as visibly unhinged as I am right now. I stare at him, with absolute disgust. "I don't know how I didn't see it," I say, "You're just like them."

"Lorelei, please, I didn't mean for this to happen. I didn't…I didn't think I'd fall for you-"

"You don't even know me!" My voice raises, and my eyes are wet but I don't look away from him. Alec is crouched on the ground, his hand pressed to the bright red mark on his jaw and is staring at me like he's breaking. I decide then that if anyone right now is allowed to break, it's me and only me, I was the one being fooled.

"Nobody does!" He says, quickly. "But before you condemn me, just know that you're friends were well aware of who you're parents are, of who your _real_ parents are. They've been lying to you the whole time Lorelei, please believe me, your adoptive parents didn't keep you locked up because they wanted to keep you safe they did it because you are valuable to their cause, you were the bait for your new friends."

"And you're working with them?" I cry out, my voice breaking.

"I…" He looks away from me, "I didn't know I could feel like this for someone I only just met, if I did…I would take it all back, everything."

"You're a liar, Alec. So don't try and bait me into doubting my friends because they could never do as much damage as you have just done to me." With that, I'm turn and start running out of the store. I'm running, and I'm crying at the same time, and I know I'm making a scene, but I don't stop. I don't stop until I'm back at the Dal, and running into Dyson's arms as I hear Bo ranting at me for scaring the hell out of her.

"I thought you were dead!" She yelled, pacing the floor. "Now what the hell happened?"

I open my mouth to speak, but nothing comes out. I'm shaking, and my head is still spinning, and I'm clutching onto the bar like it's a life boat and I'm drowning. Tamsin comes near me, and wraps her arms around me protectively. The moment Lauren steps into my line of vision, I feel her stiffen beside me. Lauren pulls a tiny flash light out of her pocket, and stands in front of me.

"Follow my finger with your eyes, ok?" She asks softly.

"Back off," Tamsin growls. "Can't you see she's in no state for your pestering?"

"I have to see what's wrong with her, Tamsin!" Lauren says taking a hold of my wrist. "Something is obviously wrong, I think she's been drugged." I'm trying to speak, but it feels like my mouth has been wired shut.

"I said back off," Tamsin says again, and she's glaring at Lauren now, like she's going to drop kick her right there in front of Bo.

"Stop it you two!" Bo says, from her place next to Trick.

"Stay out of it!" The both yell back, not looking away from each other.

"You just think you know everything don't you? How to help Bo, how to help Lorelei, when in reality you don't know anything, you're just a control freak!" Tamsin lays into Lauren, and now her hold on me is killer.

"You are just too insecure to look at the big picture, Tamsin! And I'm never the one who claimed to know how to handle Lorelei's situation, if I remember correctly, that was you!" Lauren seethes, but I'm not looking at Lauren anymore, only Tamsin who's too busy shooting daggers at the doctor to notice my bewilderment.

"What situation?" I ask, regaining my voice.

Tamsin ignores me. "Insecure? I'm trying to protect the people I care about, the ones that you seem to have a death grip on!"

"What situation?" I ask again, only louder this time.

"You don't care about Bo! You're infatuated with her-" But Lauren doesn't get time to finish, because Tamsin is already leaping through the air and tackling her to the ground. They are pulled apart quickly, and are about to lay into another round of verbal Russian roulette when I just can't take it anymore.

"Shut up!" I scream, everyone stops to look at me, as if noticing me for the very first time. As if my hysterical entrance was not the reason for this meeting. "What situation, Tamsin?"

She looks at me and the second I see her eyes flutter down to the floor, I know. I feel a knot begin to twist in my stomach, like the floor is caving in under me and I'm falling. "Oh my god," I breathe, "he was telling the truth."

"Who was, Lor?" Kenzi asks, putting a hand on my shoulder.

I shrug her off instantly. "You've all been lying to me!" I'm sobbing now, more than I was with Alec, probably more than I ever did when I ran away from home. "I'm just some pawn to you guys, aren't I?" Nobody speaks, and I cry out again but this time because I can't take it. I physically can't take the pain in my heart, my legs give out and next thing I know everything is black.


	6. Chapter 6

Things weren't looking too good for me. Not just because the last thing I remember before waking up was the fact that my closest friends, and the first boy I think I sort of maybe loved, had betrayed me and used me in some secret-pawn-type situation. No, I was in a shit situation because upon waking up I realized that: Firstly, I'd been tied to the bed. Secondly, it wasn't due to an activity that I'm usually more than willing to partake in, but because my 'friends' were afraid that I would escape.

It took me a while until I noticed Tamsin sitting in the far left corner of the room, fast asleep. I coughed, and she jumped in surprise.

"Oh, good, you're awake." She sighed in relief, getting up and walking towards me.

"Yes," I growled. "It seems I am."

"How are you feeling? Lauren said whatever's in your system should be gone by now." She bit her lip, her eyes were puffy and she was looking at me tentatively as if she didn't want to say something wrong. Unfortunately for her, everything about this situation was wrong.

"Untie me, Tamsin." I tried to say in a relatively unemotional tone, but you could hear my disgust, my anger, but probably most of all, you could hear my pain.

"I will, Lorelei, I will, but you just have to hear me out first, ok? I don't want you to run before you know the full story." She reaches to put her hand on mine, but when I squirm away she pulls back.

"It doesn't matter," I said, feeling stronger now, despite my hunger. "Nothing you say will change what you did."

"You don't even know what I did," She presses.

"You used me!" I stared at her, my eyes cold and determined. "I trusted you…You were one of the closest friends I've ever had, and you used me."

Tamsin looked like I'd just shot her, and for a second my heart hurt for her, before I tried to reach my hands out and then remembered they were tied down. She looked down and put her head in her hands. "I know," She said, quietly, "I know, and I'm so incredibly sorry, but you have to hear the whole truth. Maybe then, you can understand why I did what I did."

"Not just you, all of you." I coughed, "You all did this to me."

Tamsin nodded, "If I untie you, will you at least hear me out?"

"Am I your prisoner now?" I didn't say it so much as spit it at her. Our eyes locked, my body hot with rage, I saw the flash of understanding in her eyes. Tamsin reached over and untied me, apologizing every few seconds. When she was done, she leaned back and watched me. I sat up, but didn't get off the bed.

"You've got ten minutes." I say, after a moment. "Then I'm leaving."

"Your parents-"

"Which ones?" I jutted in, "My adoptive ones, or the real ones that you knew about but neglected to tell me?"

Tamsin took a breath, "This will only work if you listen, Lor." She went on, "Your _adoptive_ parents knew about you all along. When you came of age, they didn't lock you away because they wanted to protect you they did it because they were plotting how to use you…" She stopped, and looked down at her hands.

"How to use me for what?" And this time my voice wasn't laced with anger, it was pleading.

"To eradicate the fae world," Tamsin looked back at me, and I swear I could feel everything in that moment. My heartbeat, the ticking of the clock on the wall, Tamsin's slow and steady breathing.

"How the hell could I be any help in that?"

"You are much stronger than you think Lorelei, the abilities you know of are only the very basic of what you can achieve."

I'm gaping at her now, like she's grown three heads and has a giant pimple right in between her eyes. "I'm not following."

"Do you know the folklore behind your name?" Tamsin asked.

"I…um, yeah, Lorelei is a Germanic legend, a seductress that led sailors to their death with her voice. But what does that have to do with…" _Oh fuck._

"No," I said, after a moment, "What… what are you saying?"

"You look just like her," Tamsin smiled, looking down. "I met her briefly, in past lives. She's the original succubus, I suppose."

I felt like I was floating, I could see myself sitting on the bed facing Tamsin. My dark hair still in the French braid from yesterday, my eyes were still swollen from all my crying, but what really struck me was my eyes. They were glowing, a bright green that I'd never seen before. "And my father?" I croaked, trying not to cry, or shiver, or show any emotion. Not right now, and not in front of Tamsin.

"Your father is a discussion best kept for another time."

I was tempted to scream, to kick and yell, and call Tamsin a billion of not nice names, but I could still see us from above. I could see the way she was looking at me, tentatively, and honest. I could see the seriousness in her eyes, and how the subject of my father, despite how far we'd just come in this conversation about my past, was taking a step too far too fast.

"Alright," I say, after a moment. "But just because I'm the… _original's_ daughter, how does that mean I can bring the end of all fae?"

"It's fate, or maybe prophecy…" She trailed off, waving her hand to signify it was something along those lines. "Having two of the most powerful fae in the world as your parents can only mean that your abilities are heightened, making you stronger than any fae we know of. Lorelei's original plan was to hide you away, to protect you. However something went wrong, during your exchange you were supposed to come here, and be raised among the light under the care of whoever would be the Ashe. You're protected here, like an endangered animal or whatever." She smirked at her last statement, trying to lighten the mood. "But, then you disappeared, or well, you were kidnapped, by the Tell's."

"That seems to be a recurring theme, lately." I bit my lip, supressing a smile. I looked at Tamsin again, and let my shoulders fall, letting go of the breath I'd been holding since I'd learned my mother's true identity.

"Lor," She said, "You have to believe me that everything I kept from you was to protect you… I…I love you, your friendship means more to me than you could ever imagine." I tried not to break, to relent, but when I saw the tear slip down her cheek. When I saw the absolutely broken, and vulnerable look in Tamsin's eyes, I felt my anger slipping away.

"Hey," I whispered, wrapping my arms around her neck and pulling her close. "Tam…I get it. I understand why you did what you did, and I love you for it." Tamsin crying thoroughly freaked me out, and she must have sensed that because she pulled back after a moment.

"So, you'll stay?" She asked.

I looked down. "I don't know," I said, after a moment. "I want answers…I _deserve_ answers. I want to meet my mother, and I want to figure out my life, Tamsin. I can't just stay here like a sitting duck for my…for the Tell's to come and snatch me back up again."

Tamsin nodded, "I understand."

"Good," I smiled, "Because I sort of need you to come with me."

She looked up at me, solemn this time. "Lor… I can't. I'm assigned here, I've got a job to finish."

"I know," I said, not breaking eye contact. "The mystery job that has everything to do with that mystery tarot card you hide." I wish I'd never said it. The second it slipped out Tamsin's gaze turned from solemn to menacing.

"How do you know about that?" She asked, quietly.

I didn't know how to reply, was this the same girl that just told me she loved me and cried over her betrayal? "I read people, Tamsin." I said, leveling my gaze to match hers. "Especially you."

Tamsin stood up, and I was tempted to reach out to her again but stopped myself. _What just happened?_

"I suggest you focus on yourself, succubitch."

I sat back, stunned. My heart lurched, and I felt stung by her sudden evasiveness. "Fine," I spat, swinging my legs over the bed and standing up too. "Only if you agree to cut the phony, honourable friend act."

"Lorelei-" She sobered, once she realized I was heading for the door. Clearly this conversation wasn't ending in the way she'd anticipated.

"Don't." I barked, "If you're not on my side Tamsin, don't pretend to be. Because I need honesty right now, and I'm done giving chances to people who think my friendship comes with unconditional forgiveness." I spun on my heel, and marched out of the room, pretending I knew where I was and where I was going.

It wasn't like I meant to break in or anything, in fact the thought hadn't even come to my mind until I found myself standing in front of the Dahl, my lips pursed from the fight I'd just had with Tamsin. I knew it was bad, and unfair, and completely not who I was, but I was just so… _livid._ For the secrets, for the lies, for Tamsin's recent abandonment. All I could feel in that moment was the void of information that everyone else knew but me. So as I hauled myself through a (thankfully) open window, and tip toed my way to the basement, where I knew Trick kept records of everything Fae, I reminded myself that this wasn't personal anymore. It was a point of paramount significance in getting answers, which, when I had originally run away, is what I had set out to do.

I started with the books, desperately skimming, and taking photos on my phone of pages I flagged for further research later. I moved on to scouring the drawers, and cabinets, that's when I found the painting. It was a woman, with sunny, golden hair standing on a rock. Her face was impassive, and hard, but there was no mistaking that it was also mine, not when you looked at the green eyes. Glittering in the way I'd seen earlier today, when Tamsin had told me of my mother. She had one foot lifted, as if she were about to jump off the rock. Then it hit me, the story, the folklore, it had all been true. Lorelei was the Rhine goddess that jumped off the rock believing she saw her lover in the river, falling to her death.

 _But does that mean?_

"No." I say, before my thoughts can take me to a more destructive place. "No, please, no."

"Funny, I was thinking the same thing." I whip around and see Trick standing there, Bo behind him, her arms crossed over her chest.

"You liars," I spat, pushing myself up. "You knew! You knew who my mother was and you kept it from me."

Trick started to speak, but Bo stopped him. "Can we be alone for a minute, please?" He shrugged in reply, and disappeared up the stairs.

"If you are going to give me a lecture on why I should forgive you, I wouldn't bother."

Bo nodded slowly, leaning back on the desk. "I won't."

I raised an eyebrow, "really?"

"I wouldn't forgive me either," She shrugged, "despite my sincerity when I say that I am truly sorry, Lorelei. I know it is hard to forgive me because, believe it or not, I was in the same position as you a few years ago."

I glared at her. "They lied to you about the identity of your parents?"

She chuckled. "Yes…yes they did."

I studied her, Bo was everything I'd ever wanted to be. Strong, resilient, a leader. Someone who had chosen her own path in life, over being told how to live it. Yet, in this moment, we found common ground. A common longing to know who we were, while the world was telling us it wasn't time yet.

"Is she really dead?" I asked, after a moment.

"I don't know." Bo replied, "But I am going to help you find out."

"Why?" I scoffed, "so I'm indebted to you indefinitely? So you can keep an eye on me to ensure the safety of all Fae kind?"

"No." She said, coming to stand directly in front of me. "Because Kenzi and I are our own people, nobody owns us, especially not the Fae, and we love you. You are a part of us now, and we're not letting you run away from family just because you don't know what it feels like."


	7. Chapter 7

I see Alec's face in my dreams, every night without fail. One minute he's there and my heart swells at the sight of his smile, at how it lights up his eyes more than I thought possible, at how true and honest his gaze is when trained on me. Then, amidst my dizzying giddiness, and the idea that Alec is actually there, smiling and laughing, telling me he's missed me, I remember. Everything crashes around me, and the lightness in his face turns dark and menacing and I'm still too enchanted to pull away. I'm too far gone, too invested in this feeling and this boy, that even when I see the emblem again, I just cling tighter. I fight harder, screaming, and crying, and begging for Alec to just look at me, to _really_ look at me and realize who he was hurting.

When I wake up I'm freezing and drenched in sweat. The room is completely silent except for the sounds of my laboured breaths. I want to cry out, to scream and actually feel something inside myself that reminds me I'm _here_ , and alive, and not so completely hollow inside like I felt the moment Alec let me go. Yet my throat feels like a desert, and my eyes still sting from the tears that seemed to have dried over the night.

Why was this happening? Why couldn't I think of something… of _someone_ else?

"Lorelei?" Lauren's voice rings out through the night, from the other side of my bedroom door, or was it Kenzi's bedroom door? I couldn't remember much after that fifth margarita I'd had at the nightclub Kenzi dragged me to for a snack.

I shifted in the bed, trying to speak but it felt like I had splinters in my throat, so instead all that came out was a strangled whimper. In seconds Lauren had thrown open the door and turned the lamp on beside my bed, she's looking at me worriedly, tilting my head up and down and asking me to open my mouth wider and wider. I reply willingly, thankful for her closeness, for the stinging sensation of her cold hands on my face, reminding me that I was awake and all dreams of Alec were just that, dreams.

"I could hear you crying from Bo's room." She says, after she's satisfied that I haven't contracted some type of obvious disease from the time between Kenzi dropping me back to the crack shack and now. "Are you ok?"

I just stare at her, not sure how to answer that, and also probably still not physically able to. Lauren must realize this, as she leans over and grabs the water bottle that is placed next to two pills, and unscrews the top handing it to me. I take long and greedy gulps, sighing in relief as the ice cold water slides down my throat. When I finish, I hand the water back to her, smiling in thanks. "So," she says, softly, "do you want to tell me what's wrong? So I can offer non-medical related advice for once?"

I try to smile, to shake my head no, but suddenly it all crumbles, suddenly in the face of Lauren's pure sincerity I can't bring myself to lie. "It's Alec." I choke out, "I don't know what has happened to me but I can't think about anything else, I can't stop wondering if he's ok, if he misses me like I miss him…" _If he needs me like I need him._ "If things were different, would I still feel this way?"

Lauren blinks for a few seconds, clearly surprised that I actually took her up on her offer, and also probably surprised that I've just dished my deepest and most comically romantic problems to her, the woman I used to make me flinch every time she spoke. "I loved Bo from the second I saw her." She said, finally. I couldn't look away from Lauren in that moment, because she was staring at me, and it was so very clear in her words that she knew. She knew what I had been trying to deny since the moment I met Alec.

"How can I love him?" I whispered, the oncoming tears clouding my vision. "How can I love someone I barely know, someone who was about to betray me?"

Lauren hugs me to her, and at first it's stiff and awkward, but after a minute I relax and cry into her shoulder. "I don't know how it works, Lorelei, all I know is that it can consume you, but you can't let it define you. You can't let this get in the way of what you want, because love, the purest, and most authentic kind, can last through everything, even war and betrayal." I'm a mess, sobbing into Lauren's shoulder, and desperately clinging to her like a child. Bo chooses that moment to walk in, gasping at the site before taking the spot on the other side of me.

Lifting my head off Lauren's shoulder, I take in Bo, and her long dark hair, and worried frown through my blurry vision, trying to find the words to describe what is happening. She doesn't let me though, she wraps her hand around mine and suddenly she's hugging me to and I'm almost smothered by both of the women sitting on my bed. In this moment I swear home smells like tears, Lauren's vanilla and lavender perfume, and Bo's shampoo. Home feels like Bo's arms wrapped around me, Lauren's soothing words, and Kenzi's oversized sweater she'd given me to sleep in countless times. Home is these people, these memories, this house, and all the love that comes with it. And maybe Lauren was wrong, maybe you can let love consume you, and define you, just as long as it feels like this.

Weeks had passed, and somehow everything was ok again. Sort of. The search for my mother was constant, yet the results were always either vague or non-existent. I'd settled into a new routine, since I was still only 17, I begged and begged to be re-enrolled in school. Bo and Dyson of course refused this profusely, but thankfully Lauren came to my defence saying a social atmosphere would help with the PTSD nightmares I could be experiencing lately. So I was enrolled at the local high school only miles away from the light Fae compound, so they are on call at any moment should the Tell's decide to try and steal me again.

For safety purposes we'd changed my name to Lorelei Dennis and had Bo listed as my older sister and legal guardian. High school was amazing, despite both Kenzi, Bo, and Lauren claiming otherwise when trying to talk me out of going. However, I guess for someone who'd spent most of their life locked in their home, high school was nothing less than an adventure. That's why my mood quickly plummeted the moment I saw Tamsin leaning against her car as I walked out of the school after the final bell. She looked ethereal, standing there in her blue leather jacket, the golden hue of the sun mixing in with her hair. We locked eyes across the carpark, and I stopped short at my car, on loan from the Ashe (and in my opinion, a 'I'm sorry I failed your mother all those years ago' gift). She raised a perfectly plucked eyebrow at me as I opened the trunk and stuffed my athletics bag and backpack in, quite obviously stating that if she came to talk I wasn't complying.

As I settled into the driver's seat, about to stick the key in the ignition, the passenger door flew open and Tamsin plopped herself down, shutting the door after her. The car was silent, and I felt my heart beating faster, in what I thought was probably rage, but also sort of seemed like tension. Because despite everything, all the lies, and her hurtful words, Tamsin had a way of dismantling me to the very core, and I missed that, I missed _her._

"I've tried calling you." She says finally, after a moment.

"I've been busy." I replied.

"Sucking faces with the head jock, I know." She snorted, nodding her head at Matt, the quarterback that was now leaving the school as well and had been a popular choice for my after school snacks.

My blood went cold, and I gripped the steering wheel so hard my knuckles went white. "You've been watching me?"

"Of course I have," and she said this softer now, almost like it meant something, "I couldn't leave it to those idiots to keep an eye on you, remember what happened last time?"

The immediate reminder of Alec, and the events of that day made my stomach plummet, and I squeezed the steering wheel even harder. "Get out, Tamsin."

"We need to talk."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Nothing? Don't be so dramatic," She laughs.

"This isn't funny!" I shout, and for a split second I can see that I've startled her. "You come here to my space, you bring up _that_ day, and you expect me to forget everything you said to me? You expect me to forgive you for making it blatantly obvious your loyalties lie everywhere but with me?"

"I'll always be loyal to you, Lor."

"Shut up," I growl, and now I'm crying, tears rolling down my cheeks, and I curse myself because it's been weeks since my last breakdown and now Tamsin is doing what she does best, making me doubt everything. "You can't do this, not again, you can't promise you're going to be here for me and then pull away when I get too close."

Tamsin swallows, and I can feel it inside myself, I can feel the realization dawn over her and reality that this wasn't going to go the way she wanted. Someone was going to have to bare their souls before they left this car, and it wasn't going to be me, not again.

"I can't do that." She says, quietly.

"Do _what?_ " I ask, exasperated and ready to just walk home.

"Push you away, I can't…and Lorelei, I won't." Time freezes for a moment, and then Tamsin leans over the centre console of my car and kisses me. And I can't breathe, my entire body is frozen, my eyes wide open and staring at Tamsin's warm, tan skin, and her impossibly long lashes as her lips connect with mine, and then suddenly everything snaps back into focus and my eyes shut, and I'm kissing her back. Her hands knot through my hair, and she pulls down to tilt my head up even more, and I can't help the moan that escapes my lips and leaves me breathless. _When did my body realize how much I wanted this?_ It's rushed, and it's passionate, and if I couldn't hear the faint sound of the school band practicing in the background I might have never pulled back.

"Tamsin, I-" but my sentence falls away when I look at her, at her eyes glowing, and nervous, but absolutely and completely captivating at the same time. And suddenly I'm shaking, and I feel so completely off kilter because I realize that not once did I think of Alec during that kiss, not once did my heart ache or did my mind wander to how or where he was. Everything makes sense, why I've always felt so at ease with Tamsin, why missing her was almost as painful as missing Alec, but I was still so confused. "When did you…?"

"Always," she said, and she was breathless, and her chest was heaving in a way that made me dizzy. "Well, actually it was gradual, and I didn't realize how much until you basically cut me out of your life."

"But…but you love Bo." I countered, my heart beating against my ribcage, and my mind spinning at the same speed. "You love Bo… and I, and I love…"

"I loved Bo," she said, "I still care for her, but Lorelei I can't keep denying what I feel for you, even if it ruins everything, I needed you to know."

"I just, I'm not sure what to say…"

"Who do you love?" She asks, and my heart stops and I swear tries it's absolute best to crawl it's way up my throat.

"Huh?"

"Just before, you said 'You love Bo, and I love…', so who is it?" She's staring at me with those green eyes, and I'm trying to focus on her, on her questions, and my answers, and not the constellation of freckles that I just discovered are sprinkled over the bridge of her nose and cheeks.

"Alec," I say, sobering once I've said his name, let it pass through my lips. "I love Alec, Tamsin, and I've been trying to get over it for weeks."

She blinks, once, twice, and then she bites her bottom lip. "Oh."

"I'm sorry," I whisper, and I am, I'm so incredibly sorry because the look on her face makes me want to cry, it makes me want to reach across this car and kiss her again, and again, until she can't feel the weight of my words, until _I_ can't feel the weight of my words.

"No, no, don't be sorry, never be sorry for loving someone." She says, her voice wavering a bit. It feel like there are oceans between us now, like Tamsin's hands had never even felt what it was like to be tangled in my hair, and my lips never knew how it felt to taste hers. In one moment we were so completely connected, and the next we were severed, and drifting, and I was struggling to find a way to swim back to her, to have Tamsin drift back to me. I cared for Tamsin, deeply, and much more than I'd ever realized until this kiss, but my love for Alec was still there, and it felt wrong to ignore it, like I'd be hurting them both.

"I-I need you, Tamsin." I say suddenly, and breathlessly, and before my brain can catch up with my body, I'm reaching for her hand and lacing our fingers together. "I've missed you so much, and I never realized just how much I need you with me until the moment you got into my car and I was angry yes, but I was still relieved, because no matter how much you throw me, Tamsin, I feel so incredibly at peace with you near."

Tamsin has tears in her eyes, and I reach up, wiping them away with my thumbs. "You don't owe me anything," she says, "I just want you back in my life, please."

"Of course," I choke out, closing the distance between us and pulling her into bone crushing hug.

"Does this mean we can still be friends?" She asks, her voice muffled against my neck.

"Yes," I laugh a little, "We will always be friends, Tamsin, no matter what."

"Can I still help you find your mom?" She asks, after a moment.

I pull back. "You can, but I'm not sure there's much need, I've searched every lead… there's nothing on her or if she's still alive."

"I've got a lead," Tamsin smiles, "but it's going to require some travelling."

 **Hey guys! long time no write, I'm so sorry! please comment and review your thoughts about the story so far, and especially how you're feeling about Lorelei and Tamsin / Alec. Be back with a new chapter soon, promise!** **\- R**


	8. Chapter 8

"Would you quit fidgeting." Kenzi huffed from beside me, we were boarding the plane and all I could think about was the fact I'd be cooped up in a tin can in the sky for eight hours. Cooped up with Bo, and Kenzi, and a very tempting Tamsin.

"Sorry," I say, absentmindedly. "Planes freak me out."

"You sure it's the plane?" Kenzi waggles her eyebrows, and I sort of want to vomit.

"Kenzi," I groan, "Don't make this more uncomfortable."

"Me?" She gasped, bringing her index finger to her bottom lip in mock surprise. "Make inappropriate sexual innuendos? Especially directed to those of the succubi species?"

"Yes _you._ " I smirk, finally finding our seats, and frowning when I realized we were on opposite ends of the isle. "Who's got 34C?" I grumble, shoving my bag into the overhead compartment.

"Not me," Bo says, coming up from behind me, and I feel my stomach drop. Turning around, I see Tamsin standing a few feet behind Bo. Her hair is down, and tucked behind one ear, falling onto the shoulders of her burgundy coloured t-shirt, and my cheeks heat up at the sight of her.

"Hi," I say, once she's close enough to hear. This was the first time we'd seen each other since the kiss. Tamsin had agreed to make all the plans through Bo and Kenzi, and to give me a bit of space to clear my head.

"Hey," she smiles, and even though she's hiding it well, I see the flicker of nerves in her expression. "I can trade, if you want." She gestures to the ticket in my hand, "I'm sure sitting by Kenzi won't suck as much as I'd always imagined it too."

"No," I say, too quickly, and Tamsin raises an eyebrow. "No, it's fine."

She smiles bigger now, and it's big, and honest, and real, and I promptly feel my knees buckle. Kenzi coughs then, breaking the trance both Tamsin and I had been in. I tear my eyes away from her, and move so she can get to her seat. I'm such a mess, glancing at Tamsin from the corner of my every few moments, fidgeting in my seat and nervously tapping my feet. Everything about this felt so bizarre. Sitting next to Tamsin was so different now, it wasn't comfortable, or content anymore. I was jumpy, and wanted to keep as much space between us as possible, but at the same time I really wanted to tear her clothes off. I stopped counting how many times I looked over at Tamsin when I thought she couldn't see me, however, after one too many times, Tamsin reached over and grabbed my face with her hand. I felt the heat of her fingers searing through my skin, unintentionally, I closed my eyes and sighed.

"Lorelei," she whispers, and I think I might pass out. "Meet me in the bathroom in ten minutes, ok?"

My eyes shoot open in protest, but then I feel her thumb ghost over my lips, and all coherent thoughts I had are lost. All I see is Tamsin, and those green eyes. "Just to talk," she reassures me. I nod, and try to regulate my breathing as she climbs over me and disappears down the aisle. One minute passes by, then two, after seven minutes, I'm done waiting. I get to the bathroom cabin in seconds, and despite it being just a few feet down the aisle, I'm breathless. _What am I doing?_ I yell at myself as I knock on the door that is currently 'occupied', one, two, three, my heart is pounding so hard I'm sure Tamsin can hear it through the door. As soon as the door opens, I release the breath I've been holding since I stood up, as it opens more I push through without looking ahead of me, convinced that if I make eye contact with Tamsin in this moment I might bolt. I turn around and lock the door automatically, "I don't know why I'm so nervous," I chuckle, still facing the door.

"Yeah, I'm wondering the same thing." I freeze. _Fuck._

"Bo," I breathe out, whirling around.

"Lorelei?" She raises an eyebrow, "What are you doing?"

"I… I needed to talk to you."

"In the toilet?" She asks, looking at me with an amused smile.

"Yes…I – I needed privacy." I'm panicking, where the hell did Tamsin go? And why the hell is she not here to save me right now?

"Uh huh," Bo says, looking me over. "So what do you want?"

"Huh?"

"What do you want to talk about?" She huffs, "Lorelei if this isn't urgent I'd really rather get back to sleeping."

"Oh, um, well…" I bite my lip, I'm drawing a complete blank. "I'm just having some problems with…"

"Your hunger?" She asks, a look of concern flashing across her face.

"Yes!" I almost shout, triumphantly. "Um, yeah, it's the shots, there not working that well anymore. I'm like…starving, all the time."

"I can help with that," She says, manoeuvring us around so that her back is to the door and I'm now facing her. She turns back to me, with a wicked smile on her face. _How did this go so terribly wrong?_ "But," Bo whispers seductively, and I'm sure it's not lost on her how uncomfortable I am in this moment. "I'm sure you would much prefer our favourite Valkyrie as your first mile high snack." Then, much to my mortification, Bo winks at me and turns to exit the bathroom. She leaves me standing there, with my mouth hanging open and my mind reeling. _Was I really that obvious? Had Tamsin always been that obvious? Where the hell was Tamsin?!_

Once I collect myself, and the dignity I must have left at the bathroom door. I exit the stall, and make my way back to my seat, keeping my chin up and my eyes forward to avoid any and all eye contact with Bo and Kenzi. As I near my seat I start to fume. There in the window seat is Tamsin, staring out the window with the most innocent look on her face. I try to keep calm when I sit down, I count down from ten as I buckle my seatbelt back and take a sip of my water, but when Tamsin looks over at me, I lose it.

"You bitch!" I whisper hiss, narrowing my eyes at her.

Tamsin covers her mouth to quiet her giggles, "I had to, you were being so weird."

"Well thanks for creating the most awkward situation I've ever been in, Bo is now very aware of our situation."

"Our situation?" She smirks.

"Don't play dumb, Tamsin, I happen to know you're quite clever when coming up with ways to kill me by embarrassment." I roll my eyes at her, and turn back to the small screen in front of me.

"You love me for it," she chuckles, and reaches for my hand.

I turn back to her, and despite being completely annoyed, the corners of my mouth pulled up into a smile. Then I was laughing, we both were. Giggling like idiots, and just staring at each other like it was vital, like it held the same importance as breathing. She was right, I loved her for making light of this when everything about it felt dark. I loved her for making me laugh, and smile, when my heart felt like it was being pulled in all different directions. However, I think what I loved about Tamsin the most in this moment, was her ability to make me forget about everything. Right now, in the midst of our laughter, and tender smiles, I could only see her, I could only feel her hand in mine. For the first time in, well, forever, I didn't feel lost. I felt completely safe, and content, and so inexplicably _understood._

I lean forward, my body is buzzing, I stop when our lips are inches apart. My body is screaming at me to close the distance, to kiss her senseless, but I don't move. I want this to be right, to _feel_ right, I want to have Tamsin wholly and in every sense of the word, but only when I know I only feel this way for her. Only when I know I will no longer see Alec's face in my dreams, I owe her that, I owe Tamsin nothing less than everything. "I'm sorry," I whisper, flicking my eyes up to hers, I start to move away but she catches me. Cupping my face with her hands, Tamsin rests her forehead against mine, and I let out a shaky breath, closing my eyes. If she kissed me right now, there was no way I could stop myself.

"I love you," she says, it's so soft I almost think I've imagined it. "And I'm not going to stop just because you aren't ready, quite the opposite."

"I just, I don't know when – "

"I don't care." She cuts me off, Tamsin pulls away so that she can look at me. "I will wait for as long as you need, Lorelei. Forever if I have to."

I'm breaking. Every bit of me is melting into her touch, into the warmth of her eyes. _I do love you,_ I think while searching her face, _I'm just scared of what saying it might mean._

 _ **Hi everybody! Sorry that this chapter is so short, it was originally meant to be longer but the second part has grown and I've decided to make it into a whole chapter, and also sorry not sorry for all the Tamsin/Lorelei fluff in this, I was feeling particularly mushy while writing this. I would absolutely love some feedback, on whatever you guys are thinking about the story and plot, and also anything or anyone you might like to see in future chapters. Thanks for reading, I'll be back with the next chapter soon!**_

 _ **-R**_


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